THINK YOU ARE PRE-PLANNED? THINK AGAIN...

Family members go out of their way to try to do the right thing by preplanning and pre-paying their final arrangements. By doing so, they are trying to take the heavy burden of death off their surviving loved one’s shoulders, making it a little easier for loved ones to deal with death and dying.

Most people who preplan tell me they do so to make things easier on their children. The purpose of planning your final arrangements is to provide yourself and surviving family with peace of mind. Unfortunately, I have some bad news for you, if you choose the wrong funeral home you may not really be pre-planned at all. I dislike to use the word hate, but I hate when professionals take advantage of families, when profit is more important than people, and when high pressured commissioned sales staff are lying right to your face all while taking advantage of you at your most vulnerable time. Once you visit a funeral home and have pre-paid for your funeral arrangements this should mean things are complete, and you can continue making special memories and enjoying life with family and friends to the fullest. When the day comes that God calls you home, you do not have to worry as your funeral arrangements are in place, paid and taken care of.

If you read my articles you will know that I hold nothing back and tell it the way it is. Some may think this is abrupt however, others love it. I feel the truth is the truth and must be told. Here is my suggestion if your final wishes are in place; take some time to ask the funeral provider you have selected and pre-planned with to provide you in writing, that no additional charges other than what you paid for will apply upon your death. If there are additional charges, what are they and for what services? How much more will your family need to pay on top of what you already paid? Here are some examples of hidden costs when cremation is your choice. Remember, these costs apply after you have supposedly paid for your final arrangements in advance: (Please note pricing is approximate and will vary depending on your selected funeral home/provider/alternative)

Basic arrangement fee, administration fee, documentation fee, aftercare fee: adding up to approximately $1,325.00

Basic decedent care: $677.00
Minimum staffing fee: $235.00
Minimum use facility fee: $410.00
Transfer fee: $390.00
Environmental fee: $390.00
Basic identification fee and purchase of cremation casket: up to $6500.00 (depending on your emotional state)
Service vehicle: $295.00
Estate fraud protection: $250.00
Sanitary care of cremated remains: $400.00
MDF box for cremation: up to $1,000.00
Other extras include: weight charge (if a person is over a specific weight, you pay more for the cremation), fee for the removal of pacemaker, supervision and reception attendant fee. Your funeral provider should have no problem assuring you peace of mind by providing you a written guarantee on their company letter head that you are protected from these types of additional fees, and if there will be additional fees it is your right to be informed of the extra costs that could apply.

False and misguiding information

Do not be fooled or misguided by gimmicks such as free Will Kits or free Estate Packages/ Guides. Nothing is ever free. Once you apply for these types of so called “free packages” you may have opened the door for non-stop harassment, such as aggressive phone calls, emails and letters in the mail. Most funeral homes who offer these types of free packages do so to bypass legislation that prevents them from cold calling. However, once you make contact by accepting their offer, then you are no longer protected under this law. (No person shall in a hospital, nursing home or elderly person’s home canvass or ask a patient or resident of such hospital or home to purchase a prearranged funeral plan)

Here is a scare tactic phrase that is often used by sales staff: “You are not permitted to use our cemetery if you do not use the funeral provider associated with that cemetery.” What they are saying is if you use Voyage, for example, for a cremation, you cannot inter your loved one at their cemetery. This is completely false and misguiding and not true whatsoever. You may use Voyage or any funeral provider of your choice followed by any cemetery of your choice.

It is law/ mandatory, that you must purchase an urn from the funeral home/ provider. False: No law states that you must purchase an urn from a funeral home or cemetery.

Scattering is illegal and not permitted in Manitoba. False: under new legislation “you may scatter cremated remains (human remains that have been properly cremated may be scattered on unoccupied provincial government owned crown land or water (WHICH INCLUDES PROVINCIAL PARKS) without the consent of the government. Care should be taken to ensure that the ashes are not scattered near drinking water or recreational water activities like swimming.”

You cannot transfer your prearranged funeral package to another funeral home. False: If you are not satisfied with the provider you chose, or if you overpaid, you may transfer your Assurant Life of Canada/ Purple Shield policy to Voyage or any other funeral home provider. In most cases when you transfer your prepaid policy to Voyage, your estate will be refunded hundreds to thousands of extra dollars you have over paid upon your passing.

All funeral homes/ alternatives own and operate crematoriums. False: All funeral homes/ providers/ alternatives do not own and operate a crematorium. In my opinion, a funeral home/ provider/ alternative that does not own a crematorium should have to make the public aware that the cremation of your loved one is being subcontracted out to a third party. It is unethical and poor business practice to misguide families into thinking a business owns a crematorium or cemetery when in fact they do not. A funeral home name followed by the word cremation or crematorium does not necessarily mean they personally have a cremation facility of their own. In the province of Manitoba there are only 18 licensed crematoriums. You may view the list of licensed crematoriums at: https://www.gov.mb.ca/funeraldirectorsboard/crematoriums.html. As a licensed Funeral Director and Embalmer, I am honored to have your loved one in our care 100% of the time. Continuity of care is a must in my professional opinion. Voyage owns and operates a state of the art cremation facility that we are very proud of. The cheapest price is not always your best option. Do not be misled by low advertised cremation pricing. Some will tell you what you want to hear on the phone and once you arrive at the funeral home the extras add up, fast.

Experience the Voyage difference

Behind closed doors at Voyage, you will find 100% honesty. Anything and everything we do comes from our hearts. We are a family owned and operated funeral home. We take great pride in the care we provide to your loved one, whether it is simple cremation or traditional earth burial your loved one is our care 100% of the time. Continuity of care is extremely important to us, as you are trusting us with the care of your loved one. We are honored to serve a family at their time of need and each family we serve becomes a part of our family. We employ no sales staff period; we offer one on one personalized service. At Voyage we guarantee you will not be taken advantage of. We have no hidden costs, no surprises, no pressure. Compassion, empathy, trust, dignity and caring are our morals. We truly believe in treating your loved one as we would our own. Our vision incorporates tradition, compassion, cultural sensitivity, and cost options to meet the needs of every family.

Voyage offers a simple and dignified cremation for $1,600.00. What does this include? *Taking your loved one into our care from the place of death*, transfer to and from our crematorium, cremation fee, basic cremation casket, basic temporary urn, preparation of all legal documentation, administration fee, registration of the death with vital statistics, information folder on handling the estate, Canada Pension application forms, Survivors Pension application forms, Children Benefit application forms, six funeral directors statements of death, application form to apply for Manitoba Death Document and Medical Certificate of Death, assistance with preparation of an obituary (publication of the obituary is an additional cost) and publication of obituary on our website. (Obituary on our Voyage website at no additional cost). Because we own and operate a state of the art cremation facility, we permit families a final viewing at our crematorium at no charge if they wish to do so.

As a funeral director, I cannot take death away nor can I take away the pain. I do however have empathy and will do my utmost best to carry your family through the most difficult experiences caused by death. I promise to be honest, loving, caring, understanding and most of all have the greatest compassion, respect and dignity for your family, regardless of your situation.